PAHO blames Mexico for not complying with sanitary measures on Día de los Muertos

The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) warned that Mexico failed to comply with the measures to prevent Covid-19 transmission during the Día de los Muertos celebration.

"Despite the warnings, we can say that preventive measures were not sufficiently complied with by people, with healthy distance, hand hygiene, and above all use of masks," explained Sylvain Aldighieri, PAHO's Incident Manager for Covid-19 in a press conference.

The official pointed out that family and social events, the Day of the Dead parade, and upcoming end-of-year festivities "are likely to accelerate transmission (of the virus) from person to person".

However, he clarified that PAHO cannot estimate if there will be a new outbreak in Mexico and what its scope will be. "We have to be very cautious in these aspects," he added.

On Oct. 20, PAHO assured that "the epidemiological situation in Mexico was "at its best moment for a year". For this reason, it endorsed the Day of the Dead celebration, but with full monitoring of sanitary measures.

"The low transmission in Mexico and the positive situation that has been observed in recent weeks is a demonstration that public health measures implemented are being effective. And this is the time to continue them, especially before public events of high significance for the country's population, such as the Day of the Dead parade," noted Ciro Ugarte, PAHO's Director of Health Emergencies.

In mass events, virus transmission probability increases, so he stressed the importance of following the recommendations of health authorities and being attentive to public information directed to the population about the associated risks.

🌎 Las autoridades sanitarias deben tener una idea clara de lo que está sucediendo a nivel local y comunicar rápidamente tanto los riesgos como las medidas de salud pública necesarias para reducir la transmisión - @DirOPSPAHO #COVID19 https://t.co/gelfTFTU6t

— OPS/OMS (@opsoms) October 20, 2021

"With the implementation of preventive measures, it is possible that these festivities will be a time for reflection, joy, comfort and to further reduce Covid transmission in Mexico," he added.

As of Nov. 3, the Mexican Ministry of Health recorded a total of 3,814,453 confirmed positive cases, as well as 288,887 deaths due to the pandemic.